In photos: 3,000 Korean housewives, 250 tons of kimchi

By Frances Cha, CNN

Updated 8:43 AM ET, Fri November 15, 2013

In photos: A kimchi army of 3,000 Korean housewives8 photos

It's the kimchi brigade! – If you thought one Korean ajumma (older Korean woman with a curly perm and a 'tude) was scary, try 3,000 in one place. Just kidding. These housewives are Seoul's warmest-hearted -- they gathered on Wednesday to make kimchi for poor households who can't make their own.

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In photos: A kimchi army of 3,000 Korean housewives8 photos

City center – Travelers staying at The Plaza hotel (top right) were treated to an unusual sight: Seoul housewives filled the 13,207-square-meter Seoul City Plaza for the largest kimchi-making event to date.

Stuff that cabbage – When making kimchi, timing is key -- it takes around five to six hours for the cabbage to get properly rubbery, and only then is it ready to be stuffed with the complicated marinade.

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In photos: A kimchi army of 3,000 Korean housewives8 photos

Tons and tons – A total of 61,700 cabbages were used this year to make 250 tons of everyone's favorite fermented side dish.

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In photos: A kimchi army of 3,000 Korean housewives8 photos

Say "kimchi" – Given how complicated the process is, more and more households in South Korea are opting to buy pre-made kimchi in stores. According to a survey by research institute Gallup Korea last month, 67% of Korean households are making their own kimchi, compared to 95% of households in 1994.

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In photos: A kimchi army of 3,000 Korean housewives8 photos

Kimchi or die – According to the same survey, 71% of households responded that kimchi was "absolutely necessary" for every meal. That's a decrease from 85% in 2003.

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In photos: A kimchi army of 3,000 Korean housewives8 photos

There's a beauty – To a Korean, this salted, choked-with-anchovy-sauce-and-pepper-powder slab of cabbage looks absolutely delicious.

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Story highlights

It's kimchi season in South Korea

A record number of housewives turned out for the country's largest kimchi charity event

250 tons of kimchi are being donated to poor households

Kimchi-making season is upon South Korea, with grocery stores besieged with housewives snapping up buckets of giant cabbages, salt and red pepper powder -- or more often these days buying pre-made kimchi so they don't have to go to the trouble.

In one of Seoul's more unusual sights, 3,000 housewives marked the start of the period in which the ingredients are at their freshest, with the country's biggest kimchi-making event to date in front of Seoul's City Plaza on Wednesday.

The mayor of Seoul presided over the festival, which was a charity event started by a Busan Yakult saleswoman in 2001 to provide kimchi to poorer households, and evolved into an annual national event in 2008, according to Korean daily Joongang Ilbo.

The numbers are so large, organizers announced they're approaching Guinness to establish a new World Record category.

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